In order to compete in the current commercial environment companies must produce greater product variety, at lower cost, all within a reduced product life cycle. To achieve this, a concurrent engineering philosophy is often adopted. In many cases the main realization of this is Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFM/A). There is a need for in-depth study of the architectures for DFM/A systems in order that the latest software and knowledge-based techniques may be used to deliver the DFM/A systems of tomorrow. This architecture must be based upon complete understanding of the issues involved in integrating the design and manufacturing domains. This book provides a comprehensive